Mumbai, January 18, 2026, 14:12 IST
- JioStar posted gross revenue of Rs 8,010 crore for the October-December quarter, with profit after tax hitting Rs 888 crore
- The company reported that JioHotstar averaged 450 million monthly active users during the quarter
- Executives pointed to a challenging TV ad market, though digital growth remained steady
JioStar clocked gross revenue of Rs 8,010 crore in its fiscal third quarter, with profit after tax coming in at Rs 888 crore, the company said. The boost came from strong cricket viewership and hits like “Bigg Boss.” However, profit dipped compared to Rs 1,322 crore in the previous quarter. 1
The numbers matter because JioStar is piecing together a costly gamble: premium sports rights, mass-market TV channels, and a streaming platform that must keep subscribers hooked well beyond the final ball.
India’s battle in streaming is spilling over into advertising. Brands are reallocating budgets to digital formats that offer sharper audience targeting, while demand for traditional TV ads weakens in certain sectors.
JioStar came into existence after Reliance and Walt Disney’s India business merged their media assets. Year-on-year comparisons are tricky given when the integration happened. The unified streaming app, JioHotstar—formed by combining JioCinema and Disney+ Hotstar—debuted on Feb. 14, 2025, according to an earnings statement reported by PTI. 2
Operations revenue climbed to Rs 6,896 crore this quarter, up from Rs 6,179 crore in September, the company reported. For the nine months ending Dec. 31, 2025, gross revenue stood at Rs 26,464 crore, with a profit after tax of Rs 2,791 crore.
JioStar reported its TV network reached over 830 million viewers, clocking more than 60 billion hours of watch time in the quarter. Meanwhile, its streaming service, JioHotstar, saw an average of 450 million monthly active users — up 13% from the previous quarter.
“JioHotstar posted its strongest engagement to date in Q3 FY26 for entertainment content,” the company said, highlighting “Bigg Boss” in multiple languages alongside new series and films like “Lokah” and “Mirai.”
Sports consumption held firm. JioStar reported a 55% jump in average watch time for men’s one-day international (ODI) and Twenty20 (T20) cricket matches over the year. The Women’s World Cup final attracted 99 million digital viewers.
Kevin Vaz, CEO for entertainment at JioStar, highlighted the company’s push to convert cricket viewers into regular entertainment watchers. “We managed to convert… consumers from cricket to entertainment and kept them sticky,” Vaz said during the earnings call. Entertainment watch time jumped 15% in the quarter. 3
The quarter also revealed some pressure points. Vaz highlighted that the TV entertainment advertising market “continues to be challenging,” pointing to cutbacks from fast-moving consumer goods and consumer electronics companies. Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) dropped to Rs 1,303 crore from Rs 1,738 crore the previous quarter, according to company figures cited by The Economic Times. 4
The stakes couldn’t be higher for JioStar, locked in a battle for eyeballs and ad dollars against giants like Netflix and Amazon Prime Video. On top of that, local broadcasters and streaming apps are fighting to keep their audiences, offering cheaper plans and a nonstop flow of fresh content.
